1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a method of purifying and bulk delivery of good tasting spring water to customer's homes. More particularly, this invention pertains to a process and the apparatus for tank wagon bulk delivery and distribution of purified spring water to a bulk storage tank installed in a customer's home. The purified spring water in the present invention is then distributed from the said bulk storage water tank through the plumbing system by an electric pump to the individual faucets in a customer's home. The method and apparatus of this invention reduces both the cost of bulk delivery of purified water and also avoids an expensive requirement to maintain a pressurized bulk storage water tank at the customer's home in comparison to currently available water delivery systems or the delivery of bottled purified water.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The demand for purified potable water has increased sharply on a world wide basis an particularly in the United States primarily because of industrial waste, fertilizers used in agriculture and contamination of natural water sources. Consumer awareness of this problem and preferences for clean, good tasting, purified potable water has resulted in expanded competition in a relatively new market to supply purified potable water. Purchased bottled purified water delivered to customers' homes, offices and places of business have had rapid sales growth. High quality, good tasting purified water has commanded a premium price in the market place, but competitive pressures and consumers' natural resistance to higher purified water prices has resulted in a somewhat limited price range for the commercial sale of purified water. Bottled water packaging and distribution costs present major obstacles to reducing bottled water costs and lowering the prices for this product.
Vent on demand systems such as the water delivery system disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,042,689 for use with bottled water coolers has long been used. However, this invention does not disclose the ozonation or other chemical process to purify the water and, it is clearly not directed at solving the objective of reducing the cost of bulk purified spring water delivery to a customer's faucet in an individual home. Accordingly, it is patentably distinct from the present invention.
Another traditional problem with bulk water delivery systems is purification of the water. This problem was resolved with the disclosure made in U.S. Pat. No. 4,352,740 which generates ozone in feed gas by the electric discharge method. This process dissolves ozone and oxygen in the water stream thereby generating between 4% and 8% by weight of ozone by silent electric discharge with low power per unit ozone that is dissolved in the water thereby disinfecting the water. However, this patent addresses only a process for ozonation of water and not an overall water delivery system as in the present invention. This invention is patentably distinct from the present disclosure.
A further problem in this field was addressed by the teachings of U.S. Pat. No. 5,240,043 which discloses a system for delivery of bulk quantities of potable water from a tank truck using a pressurized system. The patent discloses a delivery valve means for substantially air-free delivery of high quality water. However, this system does not reveal the use of ozone for purification of the water, and as such this disclosure is patentably distinct from the present invention.
One of the most relevant developments in this field is observed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,803,139. This patent discloses a bulk water delivery system, consisting of a water supply truck equipped with a pumping system and an onboard ozone generator for delivery of potable tank water to a customer's supply tank. Critical distinctions in this disclosure from the present invention include the absence of a DC pump system, which runs off the bulk water tank truck's electrical system as observed in the present invention, and the restrictive requirement in U.S. Pat. No. 5,803,139 requiring use of pressurized water tank in the customer's home.
The present invention avoids the limitations of U.S. Pat. No. 5,803,139 of costly plumbing, pressure tank maintenance expense as well as the water delivery problems resulting from a limited pressure system which is attempting to deliver water to multi-faucets through use of a simple inexpensive electric pump to pump fresh purified spring water to as many as desired individual customer's faucets hooked into this system. These improvements make this method superior; less expensive to maintain; patentably distinct; and improve the flow of clean fresh purified spring water to a customer's faucets.